


I've been sober 'cause there ain't no hangover like you

by luversd



Series: SuperCorp Adventures [10]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Comatose Kara Danvers, Identity Reveal, Lena Luthor Finds Out Kara Danvers is Supergirl, but she wakes up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2020-01-24 10:14:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,488
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18569329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/luversd/pseuds/luversd
Summary: After the fight with Reign, Supergirl ends up in a coma. Lena finds out Kara is Supergirl and wants to drink, but can't because her drunk self will call Kara again and the blonde probably won't answer, until she finally does.Supercorp friendship





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Title from ‘Drunk Me’ by Mitchell Tenpenny
> 
> A lil country never hurt nobody
> 
> Lena doesn't have a PhD in biomedical sciences (or maybe she has, we don't know) but let's pretend she does.
> 
> Hope you enjoy, drop a comment or a kudos if you do x
> 
> The characters belong to the CW and DC Comics.  
> All mistakes are mine.

It was obvious. Looking back, Lena Luthor had to admit Supergirl's disguise had been conspicuous. It had taken Alex Danvers screaming her name in anguish as her body crashed into the pavement for the CEO to make the first connection.

After the initial shock of seeing National City's hero bleed an unhealthy amount of blood onto the broken asphalt and finding out that it was actually her best friend lying there unresponsively at her feet, the young businesswoman jumped into crisis mode. Her high heel donned feet moved her forward, towards the agents in black as her hands rolled up the sleeves of her overpriced mauve designer shirt after having shaken her jacket off and left it hanging in her companion, James Olsen's hands.

'Alex,' she called loudly to grab the DEO agent's attention. 'What can I do?' Lena Luthor had graduated from MIT at the top of her class and she had a PhD in biomedical sciences. She would be damned if she didn't put her knowledge to good use.

The redhead nodded towards the Super as her hands worked on attaching the Kryptonian to the stretcher, 'check her breathing.'

Putting two fingers on the pulse point at the blonde's neck and leaning in extremely close to her mouth, she listened carefully through the chaos of it all, to hear the whisper of a breath, to feel a faint heartbeat under her fingertips.   
'Pulse is weak, and shallow breathing. She's hanging on,' the raven haired woman stood up just as Alex tied the last strap. 'But barely. Wherever you're taking her, make it quick.'

The Danvers sister joined her side as they watched a few men carry the broken hero into a black van. Alex was about to jump into the back, unwilling to leave her sister's side at any time, when a hand grabbed her arm.

'Alex.' It was Lena. 'Breathe.' Although she was trying her best to keep it together and act like the medical practitioner everyone was expecting her to be, the panic and fear were evident in her eyes. 'She's stronger than we know. She'll get through this, like she always does. Have faith in her Kryptonian physiology and above all, don't give up on her.'

The redhead gave her a sad smile at the words of encouragement. 'Thank you, Lena. You're a good friend. And I won't give up on her, ever. She's family, you know?' She leaned in for a quick hug before effectively loading into the vehicle.

The Luthor watched as the medical team drove away and the adrenaline coursing through her veins started to wear off. She felt her jacket being placed on her shoulders before James' voice reached her ears, 'come on. Let's get you home.' He attempted to guide her away from the scene but the woman was immovable.

'Where are they taking her?'

The bulky man sighed behind her. 'You know I can't tell you that, Lena.'

The CEO turned around to face the photographer and narrowed her eyes, 'for God's sake, James. I just saw my best friend plummet to the ground, barely hanging onto life, possibly already dead, and you're not going to tell me where they're taking her?'

'I'm sorry, Lena, but you haven't even signed the NDA-'

'Kara's dying and you're talking to me about paperwork?' Lena looked at him incredulously. She shook her head and waved him off, 'never mind. I'll ask Alex about it. Good night, James.'

With that, she stalked off towards the tall L-Corp building, knowing her driver would be waiting for her there to take her home.

\-----

It had taken a while for the revelation about Supergirl's identity to sink it. In the three weeks the hero was in a coma, which more accurately felt like three lifetimes in Lena's book, the businesswoman had successful gone through the five stages of grief.

It started with denial. During the first few days after the fall of National City's superhero, the raven haired woman had done mental gymnastics back and forth wondering if she hadn't just imagined Alex screaming Kara's name. Maybe it was just her brain playing a trick in the heat of the moment, a hallucination caused as a reaction to the absurdity of the situation of the girl of steel looking so weak and defeated, and dead. So, as if to prove a point, Lena called her best friend's phone in the hopes that she would answer and that life would be exactly as it had been before the fight, before Reign. And when the blonde reporter didn't pick up day after day, she rationalised her behaviour by making up excuses like, she's on vacation and she forgot to mention it. Or she went camping and there's no service. Or she's gone undercover and can't answer her phone without blowing her cover. Or, another plausible explanation when it came to the clumsy human version of a golden retriever, she dropped her phone in the toilet and was currently phone-less. Although the last one wouldn't explain why Kara Danvers hadn't stopped by at L-Corp for their nearly daily lunches. A growing fear tugged at the Luthor's gut, a nervousness that only the reporter could instil in her: Kara was sick of her and this was her way of leaving her. No goodbyes, no phone call or text, nothing. But Lena  ** _knew_** the blonde could never be this cruel. At least she'd send her a message or ask for a meeting. She wouldn't have the heart to ghost her. This meant that Kara was either on holiday or camping or doing a job undercover.

The anger came when the CEO couldn't deny that all three of her justifications didn't seem to stick. It didn't matter how many ways she tried to look at it, she couldn't refute the fact that Kara Danvers was Supergirl. There were too many signs that pointed in that direction and she would be a fool not to believe it at this point.

Alex Danvers sent her updates about their mutual friend's condition, and if that wasn't already a telltale sign then there was the fact that Kara Danvers 'flew to her office on a bus', that she happened to grab coffee with Supergirl at 9pm when Lena had been attacked in her office that night. It was also no coincidence that her only two friends seemed to be two blondes with a heart of gold who endlessly believed in her, and Lena knew it would be too good to be true to have more than one friend in the city. In her experience, Luthors were not the most approachable or welcomed family line in town.

The young businesswoman tried to get over her emotions and text the redhead back. Ask for a location, if she could come and see her maybe. But all that kept going round in her head was 'why?'. Why hadn't Kara, her supposedly best friend, told her about her alter ego? Lena wasn't one to brag about her friendship skills because she didn't have much clue how those relationships worked, but she could've sworn she had given the hero dozens of reasons to trust her. She had never questioned the blonde's integrity, she had supported her through thick and thin and been there for her when the world was spinning too fast for the both of them. She had poured her heart out, let her guard down and yet, the reporter had held onto this secret like a child holding onto their candy. Had she done something, said something that was deemed untrustworthy? Why hadn't Kara told her the truth when she knew how she felt about being lied to? Was she ever going to tell her?

Why, why, why?

After her brain unhealthily ruminated about the why's for three days straight, if switched over to the what ifs.

What if Kara  ** _was_** going to tell her, but she just hadn't had the opportunity to do so yet? For a brief moment, the green eyed woman pointed out to no one in particular that the superhero had had three years to do it, but she was being hopeful so she dismissed the argument.

What if Kara was too scared to reveal herself? Lena Luthor knew from her own experience that coming out was never a fun thing to do. It was nerve wrecking and sometimes you lost friends and family you never thought you'd have to live without. She was aware it wasn't exactly the same situation, but coming out as a member of a minority who have been shown hate and disgust, well, she could relate to that.

What if Kara wasn't ready to let go of her past? Lena had been four years old when her birth mother had passed away, and she didn't remember much about the woman, but what she did have engraved in her memory, she had kept to herself for as long as possible. Perhaps it had something to do with the lack of friends she had had growing up, but more importantly it was because she didn't want to share. That was  ** _her_**  mother, her real family. It was like her own superpower, a source of love during the darkest of times and a memory to hold onto when she felt alone.

If Kara's story about being adopted by the Danverses when she was thirteen was true, then she couldn't imagine how much pain and grief the Kryptonian had to have gone through at such a young age. Maybe there was a part of her wishing it had been a dream, that not saying it out loud would make it less real. Lena didn't know, couldn't know, but whatever it was, she could understand it.

What if Kara wasn't allowed to divulge her secret identity no matter how much she wanted to? What if a secret governmental agency forbade her to do so without good reason and that's why Lena had been kept in the dark? After all, she  ** _was_** a Luthor. It wasn't hard to figure out why she wasn't on the short list of people who knew who Supergirl was.

Maybe it was a combination of everything. Maybe it was something else. Whatever it was, she knew the blonde had to have had a good reason not to tell her, and that was enough to give her hope that their friendship had survived the worst of the wreckage, that is if the superhero didn't succumb to her wounds.

One week after the fallout, the L-Corp CEO texted Alex Danvers back.

 ** _To Alex Danvers_**  [06:34 am]   
How is she? Can I see her?

[06:34 am]  ** _To baby Luthor_**  
Still in a coma. Not looking good but she's a fighter. Are you free right now? I could come pick you up.

 ** _To Alex Danvers_**  [06:35 am]   
Not the news I was hoping for but she's alive so I'll take it. Sure, I'll have Jess clear my day. I don't know what kind of tech you're using, but I hope I can be of some help.

 ** _To Alex Danvers_**  [06:35 am]  
And Alex? Thank you.

[06:35 am]  ** _To baby Luthor_**  
Having you there will already be enough, Lena. But your brains will also be appreciated. No problem, I'm just glad to have you on our side. I'll be there in 10.

[06:36 am]  ** _To baby Luthor_**  
And please make me a cup of coffee with that amazing machine of yours. I swear it's the best in the city. Thanks babe x

Lena Luthor smiled at the last message from the redhead before heading to her kitchen and making two cups of coffee. She quickly notified her assistent that she wasn't coming to the office today and apologised for the last minute cancellation, knowing she had just left the poor woman with the task of calling up those ruthless businessmen and cancelling their long awaited meetings.

The Luthor poured the caffeinated drinks in two reusable and portable cups, appreciating the eldest Danver's similar taste in black coffee unlike the blonde woman's habit of pouring too much sugar and cream into it until the light bitter taste of the roasted coffee beans was no longer detectable.

The buzzer from the doorman let her know that her temporary chauffeur was there. She slid her heels and her jacket on, and grabbed the essentials before heading out the door. She knew the doctor wasn't in the mood to come up and waste precious time apart from her sister, and she was grateful that the redhead took some time off to pick her up.

After a quick hug, the ladies made their way to the car, both of them sipping contently on the still warm coffee.

'Thank you for doing this, Alex,' Lena spoke up once they were on the road. 'I don't know if you're breaking any rules here, but I really appreciate it.'

The DEO agent briefly looked to her right at the younger woman, 'of course, Lena. I figured you know about Supergirl by now, and it wouldn't be fair to keep you away from her.'

'I'm sorry it took so long,' the Luthor apologised softly as she stared out the windshield.

'It took you a week, Lena. That's shorter than any of us expected, so don't beat yourself up, okay? You came through for Kara, no matter how long it would've taken, she'll always remember that,  ** _we'll_**  always remember that,' Alex told her honestly as she attempted to comfort the other woman.

The young billionaire let her words sink it and stayed silent. Neither of them spoke a word for the rest of the ride, but they didn't mind the quiet. It was comfortable and soothing to feel the other's presence in the small vehicle.

—  
'Don't I have to sign an NDA or something?' Lena Luthor raised an eyebrow at the Danvers sister as they walked the halls of the DEO building.

'Do you want to do that right now?' Alex countered with a similar expression on her face.

The MIT graduate shrugged. 'Not really, but if that's the ticket to see Kara, then yes, definitely.'

The redhead smiled at the affection the businesswoman had for her little sister and shook her head lightly. 'Don't worry about it. We can do that after she wakes up. I trust you're not planning on telling anybody about her secret?'

'Of course not. Where are we going? I think we passed by the infirmary,' the CEO craned her neck to make sure it had been the medbay she had seen and not just any other room.

'She's not in the medbay. She's on the Legion's ship,' the DEO agent explained as she entered a code and the metal door before them slid open. 'Long story short, they're from the future and they have better equipments than us so we're keeping Supergirl here.'

They stepped onto the ship just as the crew joined them in the main room.

'Hey, isn't that... Mon-El? Who left Earth because of the lead in the atmosphere? Kara's boyfriend Mon-El?' Lena looked surprised and confused at the same time. The whole alien side of Kara's life was quite new to her and she wasn't sure what to do with all this information.

'Lena, good to see you. How've you been?' The young man greeted her friendlily.

'Could be better, given the circumstances. How are you here?' She wondered out loud.

Mon-El smiled a little at the CEO's rare display of bafflement. 'Four hundred years from now, L-Corp develops a cure for lead poisoning. That's how I'm standing here today, it's all thanks to you and your company.'

A small glint of hope appeared in the Luthor's eyes at the thought of her company doing some good in the future. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad after all.

'This is Brainiac 5, he's a 12th level intellect. And this is my wife, Imra, she has psychic abilities and she's pretty badass,' the Daxam introduced, grinning as his lover bumped him with her shoulder at the teasing undertone.   
'Guys, and lady,' he added, 'this is Lena. CEO of L-Corp in the 21st century. She's the one who's changed LuthorCorp into the company it is now, and it's thanks to her legacy that I could come back to Earth,' Mon-El explained to his team members, giving the Luthor a warm smile as he did so.

'That's pretty neat,' Imra complimented genuinely before reaching her hand out. 'Good thing there's enough space on this ship for four badass women.'

Lena shook her hand and smiled, 'I think you might be grossly overestimating my toughness there, but it's a pleasure to meet you, Imra.'

'Don't listen to her. She's just being modest. She's the baddest of asses out there,' Alex jumped in, contradicting the woman's words.

'I'd say,' the telepath grinned softly at their friendship.

'Lena Luthor. It's an honour to meet you,' Brainiac 5 greeted before kissing the raven haired woman's hand. 'I would estimate you to be a 1.97 intellect, which is much higher than the average human being in the 21st century. For reference, I'm a 12th level intellect.'

'Thank you, I think. I would love to sit down and have a talk with you once this is over,' Lena told the alien truthfully, excited at the prospect of meeting a creature with such high intellect.

'That seems like a good idea. In the meantime, let's go check on our friend, Supergirl,' the Coluan suggested before leading the way to where the Super was resting.

Holding her breath in anticipation, Lena stepped through the threshold and spotted her best friend's body immersed in water.   
'Kara,' the soft gasp escaped her lips before she could stop it.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The plot thickens... aka she wakes up, eventually.

'We put her in a medical pod until she recovers,' DEO agent Alex Danvers explained to the CEO. 'Once she's healed, the fluid will be drained out and Kara should wake up.'

'And I'm connected to her mind so I can speak to her, while she rests,' Brainiac 5 added.

'How- how is she? Have you spoken to her? Is she okay? Mentally?' Lena swallowed the lump in her throat at the thought of Kara being trapped in the unconscious world.

'She's... frustrated. She would preferably be kicking Reign's behind right now instead of being in a coma,' the blue alien informed the team. 'But her mind seems to be intact.'

'That's good,' the MIT graduates sighed in relief. Wherever she was, Kara was alright. Now all she needed to do, was wake up.

'How long until her body heals and she wakes up?' She asked the 12th intellect, a subtle hint of desperation present in her voice.

'Only time will tell. The pod's taking care of the healing process, and there's nothing more we can do for her but wait until she's ready to return to the conscious world,' he replied to her honestly.

That wasn't the answer Lena had been hoping to hear. Her fingers twitched slightly as they ached to get to work, to find a cure for the Super lying in the aquarium. It was in her nature to look for the solution to a problem and eventually finding it, so standing there, doing nothing was causing her stress levels to rise up. A soft hand on her shoulder guided her away from the medical room and back to the main room.

'I know,' Alex told her quietly. The redhead had the same itch in her body to just do something, anything that could help speed up the healing process, but when it came to 31st century technology, she was just as useless as the genius under her arm.   
'It sucks, but all we can do right now is just be there for her. Brainy can relay a message to her if you'd like,' she mentioned as they exited the Legion's ship and made their way to the DEO.

The Luthor nodded slightly before letting out a shaky breath. 'God, this was harder than I thought.'

'I know,' the Danvers sister sympathised as she pulled the young businesswoman in a tight hug they both needed.

Both ladies had tears in their eyes as they pulled away but neither of them acknowledged their blurry visions.

'I'm going to go back in. There are vending machines here and this place is big enough to stroll around without going round in circles. Take all the time you need, and remember I'm literally two minutes away if you need me,' the Danvers told the green eyed woman with a pointed look that warned her not to build her walls back up just because of the sticky situation they were in. They were in this together, and Lena had never been more grateful for the Danverses sisters than in that moment.

'Promise I'll come and get you as long as you do the same. And don't worry, I'll just be a minute,' she promised.

'There's no rush,' Alex smiled softly before kissing the younger woman's forehead and heading back to the futuristic ship.

Standing there alone in the middle of the hallway of a clandestine governmental organisation, Lena Luthor took a deep breath and gathered herself. Once Kara's wounds healed, the pod would empty itself and she would wake up. Simple. There was no way the 31st century tech would fail them now, right? Right. Heal, drain, wake up. That was all. With a newfound hope for the seemingly easy recovery, Lena walked back to the ship, through the metal door of which Alex had provided her the code with.

——

It turns out it wasn't that simple. The recovery process went something like heal, drain, end up in a coma, again. No one knew what was going on. Brainy insisted it was a psychological matter and not a physical one, but that didn't make it any better, because how do you heal a mind you didn't even know needed healing? Only Kara could heal herself at this point and even she seemed at a loss for things to do.

It didn't take long for the depression to kick in. If the three-step plan she had chanted almost religiously in her head, the three-step plan that was guaranteed to work, didn't work, then what would? Lena Luthor wasn't ready to lose her best and only friend. She wasn't ready to let go of the single most important person in her life.

That's how she ended up drunk at her home bar, dialling her favourite person's phone number. She heard it ring and ring until it finally went to voicemail. Lena was not ready. She was absolutely ill-prepared to hear Kara Danvers chirpy voice speaking through her iPhone speakers. She didn't know why it had taken her by surprise, it was clear that the blonde wouldn't be answering her cellphone right now.

Her sober self wasn't doing much better. Except sober Lena was still L-Corp's CEO and she still had a company to run. It wasn't because her world had stopped spinning that the planet also stood still. So Lena's days consisted of L-Corp business, DEO visits and drunken calls to the one person who wouldn't pick up the phone.

It took her five days to realise what she was doing. Five phone calls to a comatose patient to recognise the madness of her actions.   
That's how the CEO found herself sober on the sixth day of the Great Luthor Depression. Honestly? Lena didn't like being sober, she didn't like having a clear mind to think about all the things that had gone wrong during the past three weeks, but she knew if she drank, she'd end up calling Kara, and that hurt more than any thought she could come up with.

The Luthor didn't know if it was her new no-alcohol policy or if it was because she had stopped calling the blonde, but a few days later, she was hit with a realisation. A painful realisation that she coud really lose Kara Danvers at any moment. The hero was a Kryptonian, not a goddess. She was incredibly strong, but she wasn't immortal. It wasn't a pleasant thing to think about, but Lena couldn't ignore the possibility of Kara dying.

It felt wrong. Saying goodbye over the phone felt very wrong, but the green eyed  businesswoman didn't have the heart to do it in person for fear that Kara might hear her and think she had given up on her. She hadn't of course, she was only bracing herself for the worst case scenario and this would give her some peace of mind.

Lena drew in a shaky breath and let it out before hitting the green call button. This was the last time she'd do this, she promised herself, she promised Kara who by now should have a few missed calls from her favourite CEO.   
She heard Kara's voice, and the tone that signalled her to start leaving her message. The raven haired woman hesitated, was she really going to do this?

Yes. 'Kara, hi. It's Lena. Luthor. I- um, I don't know if you'll hear this, but I just wanted to say thank you for being the most amazing friend I have ever known, I know the bar seems to be set pretty low, but you have redefined friendship, love and happiness, Kara Danvers. You, you are the best thing that has happened to me and if you need to go, then it's okay. Do what you have to do. I l-,' tears welled up in the green eyes as another  _beep_  cut her off.

But she wasn't done. She redialled the number and listened to the perfect timed ringing, her next words ready on her lips.

'Hi, Lena,' a hoarse voice greeted from the other end of the line.

Lena almost dropped her phone at the unexpected answer. Had Kara Danvers aka Supergirl aka her comatose best friend just picked up her phone? She checked the screen and noted the call was still ongoing.

'Kara?' She whispered unbelievably.

'Yeah. I'm uh, not dead. Yay me. I'm sorry I didn't pick up before. I couldn't get to my phone in time-,' the blonde apologised tiredly.

'Don't worry about it. You're awake? You're really-, can I come and see you?' Lena's heart skipped a beat at the thought of seeing her best friend alive and on the mend.

'Please, I miss you. You know you never have to ask, Lena,' the blonde reminded her softly.

'I'll be there in 20.'

'Slowpoke,' the Super teased her, making the Luthor smile widely.

'I'm sorry, Kara, but the flying busses are out of service today, so what's a girl to do?' Lena countered cheekily, earning a warm laugh from the hero.

'Just get over here,' Kara's smile was audible through the phone. 'And Lena? I love you.'

The raven haired woman bit her lip as a grin threatened to break out. 'I love you too, dork.'

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading honeys x


End file.
